Stop-motion.



W. LARKIN.

STOP MOTION.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 13.1917.

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W. LAHKIN.

STOP MOTION.

APPLICATION FILED IAN. I3. I9I7.

1,288,056, r Patented Dec.17,1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

W. LARKIN.

STOP MOTION.

APPLICATION F|LD1AN.|3.19|7.

WALTER LARKIN, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, A-SSIGNOR TO I-I. BRINTON COMPANY, 0F PHILADELPHIA, VANIA.

PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF PENN SYL- STOP-MOTION.

assenso.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 17, 1918.

Application filed January 13, 1917. Serial No. 142,206.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, WALTER' LARKIN, a citizen of the United States, residing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, have invented Stop-Motions, of which the following is a specification.

One object of my invention is to provide a novel form of stop motion for a knitting machine, particularly designed to permit of the convenient and rapid placing of the thread or yarn in the sweep hooks or other elevated thread actuated or thread guiding members ;-said invention more especially including a novel construction of brace rod and sweep support arranged to permit of the lowering or raising of the thread supporting ends of the sweeps or thread actuated members at will.

These objects and other advantageous ends I secure as hereinafter set forth, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which,

Figure 1 is a side elevation partly in vertical section, illustrating my invention as applied to a well known form of stop motion;

Fig. 2 is a plan of the device shown in Fig. 1,- the cap being removed from the top of the standard;

Figs. 3 and e are perspective views ot' certain of the parts of the apparatus shown in Figs. 1 and 2; and

Fig. 5 is a side elevation partly in section illustrating a modified form of my invention.

In Figs. 1 to 4e of the above drawings, 1 represents the supporting standard or column of a knitting machine stop motion, upon the upper end of which is Xed a casing 2 inclosing certain vof the stop motion mechanism whose operation is governed by thread controlled iingers forming no part of the present invention and not illustrated. The cover 3 ofthe casing supports a vertically extending rod i at the top of which is iixed a block 5 formed to serve as a bearing for a pivot or pintle 6 whereby the head 7 of the horizontally extending sweep supporting arm or bar 8 is movably carried. For this purpose said head is made in the form of a iork whose branches extend on opposite sides oi' the main part of said block 5 in such manner as to permit of movement of said arm 8 through an arc of about 600 below its normal horizontal position.

The casing 2 has projecting from its body a short horizontally extending rod 9 rigidly connecting it to a collar 10 fixed to or supporting a vertical brace rod 11 which eX- tends into or is designed to telescope with a tubular rod 12 whose upper end is provided with two oppositely disposed vertically eX- tending slots 13 and 14 for the passage of the sweep supporting arm 8. These slots are so placed that when said arm is in its normal horizontal position, it rests on the lower end of the slot 13 and practically engages the top end of the slot 11h-the tubular rod 12 being held in the elevated position necessary 'to ret-ain the arm 8 in the position shown, by means of a projecting collar 15 attached to its lower end and having eX- tending downwardly from it a supporting bar 18 terminating in a fork 17. The latter is designed to rest upon the horizontal conneet-ing rod 9 when the sweep supporting arm 8 occupies its normal position. f

The sweeps consist of relatively stiff wires 18 and 19, having one pair of their ends journaled respectively in suitable slots 20 and 21 of the head 7 and extending into cross slots 22.

The extremities of the sweeps in the slots 22 are preferably each made in the form of single turn coils 24 whose free ends eX- tend upwardly so as to normally rest upon or lie immediately adjacent the underside of a plate 25 rigidly connected to or formed as part of a block 27 which with the said plate is inclosed by a cover or cap 28. This latter rests upon the upper face of the block 5 to which it is removably held by a screw 30 also serving as a guide for the block 27. The latter is connected in any suitable manner to the upper end of a tension wire 31, as by means of a clamping screw 26, and said wire is operatively connected to control the operation of the mechanism for stopping the machine, for example in the manner and by the means described and claimed in my application for U. S. Patent #129,127, filed November 2, 1916.

The outer ends of the sweep wires are journaled in suitable bearings provided by a plate 82 fixed to the end ofthe arm 8 and are bent upwardly and outwardly at angles of approximately 45o on opposite sides of a vertical Vplane passing through the standard 4 and the brace rod 11-12. rllhe other ends of the sweeps have the form of hooks S3 and 34 for the reception of the thread or yarn.

Under operating conditions any abnormal tension on the thr ad pulls down on the upwardly extending parts of the sweep arms 18 or 19, causing their main portions to turn in their bearings through a small angle and forcing the extremities of their coils up agair st the underside of the plate Such action raises said plate and with it the block 27 and wire 31 so as to operate the stop motion in the well known manner.

1f for any reason the thread should break or be otherwise removed from the sweep hooks 33 and 34, these may be lowered by slightly raising the forked end 17 of the member 16 to cause it to disengage the rod 9 and thereafter lowering it with the arin 15 and tubular rod 12. Such movement permits the sweep supporting arm S to swing downwardly on the pivot pin G from the position shown in full lines to that indicated in dotted lines, thereby bringing the sweep hooks within the convenient reach of an operator who is thus permitted to replace the thread in them without being required to climb upon some elevated object or use a threading stick as has hitherto been necessary.

After the thread has been replaced in either one of the hooks 33 or 34, the head end 17 of the member 16 is raised, thus through the collar 15 sliding the tubular rod 12 upwardly on the upper end of the brace rod 11 and bringing the sweep supporting arm 8 with the sweeps to their normal positions, where they are retained by placing the forked structure 17 upon the horizontal connecting rod 9 of the stop motion frame.

t is understood that the outwardly extending ends of the sweeps 18 and 19 are normally retained in and tend to eturn to their elevated positions under the action of springs 36 which engage their coiled ends 24 and have their lower ends connected to a collar 38 fixed at a suitable point on the column or supporting structure 4.

ln that forni of my invention shown in Fig. 5, instead of pivoting to the standard 4 the head which carries the sweep supporting armV 8, 1 fix such head 40 `to the upper end of a tube 41 whose lower end slidably receives a rod 42 which like the rod 4, is carried by and extends upwardly from the top of the casing 3.

The outer part of the sweep supporting arm is rigidly connected to the upper end of a second tube 43 whose lower end iits over the upwardly projecting rod 11. These two tubes with the structures carried by them are supported in their normal elevated positions by a strut 44 which at its upper` end is fixed rigidly to the sweep supporting arm 8 at a suitable point between the head 40 and the tube 48,'and at its lower end is provided with a forked structure 17 designed to iit over the horizontal tie rod 9.

The movement-transmitting wire whereby the sweeps are operatively connected to the belt shifting or brake applying mechanism for stopping the machine is formed in two parts 45 and 46 respectively having eyelets 47 and 48 at their adjacent ends so arranged that the rod 45 passes through the eyelet of the rod 46 and the latter in turn passes through the eyelet 48 of said irst section.

With such an arrangement ofoparts the sweeps are carried in their elevated positions in the well known manner as long as the forked end 17 of the strut 44 engages the tie rod 9 asshown. When, however, it is desirable to thread said sweeps, said supporting rod or strut 44 with its associated parts is first raised upwardly to free its forked end 17 from the rod 9, after which it may be lowered, thus permittingtherods and 11 to slide within or telescope-with the tubes 41 and 43. At the same time the two sections of the wire 454416 slide one upon the other as the said tubes are loweredg After the thread ork threads have been 17eplaced in the sweeps, the latter are raised to their elevated position by lifting the vrod 44 and are retained therein by the rod 9 as before. Jl/Then in this position the two eyelets 47 and 48 of the movement transmitting wire 45-46 are in engagement, so that as before a sufficient downward swing of either of the sweep ends under the action of an abnormal pull upon either of the threads, causes an upward movement of said wire and a consequent release of the means for causing stoppage of the machine.

1. The combination in a stop motion-of a supporting structure; an arm pivotally connected to the structure and movable into and out of a normal elevated position; a sweep journaledon said arm and operatively connected to stopping mechanism; with means for retaining the arm with the sweep in its operative position.

Q. The combination in akstop motion of a supporting structure;V an arm pivoted thereto; a thread actuated member on the arm movably connected to stopping' mechanism and movable with said arm into and out of an elevated position; with a device for normally retaining the arm with the sweep in the latter position.

3. The combination of a supporting standard; an arm pivoted thereto; a member engaging said arm at some distance from its pivot for moving its end portion into and out of an elevated position, said end portion being normally inaccessible when elevated; with stopping mechanism, including a thread actuated element mounted on the arm.

4. The combination of a supporting standard; a thread actuated member movably mounted thereon and including a part for the reception of a thread; with a vertically movable member operatively connected to said thread actuated member in position to raise or lower the thread receiving part thereof, said part being normally inaccessible when elevated.

5. The combination in a stop motion of a supporting structure including a standard; an arm pivotally connected to the upper part of said standard so as to be movable into and from an elevated position; a sweep carried by said arm and operatively connected to stopping mechanism; a vertically extending member carried by the supporting structure; with a second member guided by said first member and operatively connected to the outer portion of the arm for swinging the same on its pivot.

6. The combination in a stop motion of a supporting structure including a standard; an arm pivotally connected to the upper part of said standard; a sweep carried by said arm and operatively connected to stopping mechanism; a vertically extending member carried by the supporting structure; a second member `uided by said first member and operative y connected to the outer portion of the arm for swinging the same on its pivot; and a device for locking the second member with the arm in an elevated position.

7. The combination of a supporting structure having a standard and a guide rod; an arm pivoted to the upper part of said standard; a tube guided on the rod and engaging said arm; a device for locking said tube in position to retain the arm substantially at right angles to the standard; with a thread actuated member carried by the arm and operatively connected to stopping mechamsm.

8. The combination in a stop motion of a supporting standard; an arm having a forked head; a pivot extending between the branches of said head and through the upper portion of said standard; a sweep journaled on said arm and having a projecting portion adjacent said pivot; stopping mechanism including a member mounted on the standard in position to be actuated by said projecting portion upon a partial rotation of the sweep arm, said sweep having a part projectin at right angles to the remainder and formed to receive a thread; with means for normally maintaining the arm in a substantially horizontal position while permitting it with the sweep to be swung downwardly at will.

9. The combination in a stop motion of a supporting standard; an arm pivoted to the upper portion thereof; a guide member; a tubular member vertically slidable on said guide member and having two vertically displaced slots for the passage of said arm, of which the bottom of one slot supports the arm; a forked rod connected to said tubular member; a structure on the supporting structure in position to be engaged by said forked member to retain the arm in a substantially horizontal position; with a sweep or sweeps mounted on the arm and having thread engaging portions placed to be lowered when the arm is moved downwardly.

10. The combination of a supporting structure having a plurality of upwardly projecting members; an arm capable of being raised or lowered at will; an element movably guided on at least one of said members for actuating said arm; a device for normally maintaining the arm it its elevated position; with a thread actuated member carried by the arm and operatively connected to stopping mechanism.

-In witness whereof I ailix my signature.

WALTER LARKIN.

Copies of this patent may be obtaineddor ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

